Simians of Swing

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“Slow or fast, upbeat or downcast, the Simians of Swing is an impressive and enjoyable outfit”

All About Jazz

The Simians of Swing are no ordinary jazz group; they are story tellers in the great comic-book tradition. Each number on their eponymous album is a soundtrack to a hero or villain; some of the characters are good, most are bad … but all are legends with tales of revenge, tragedy and romance. Set in a post-apocalyptic world the Simians narrate their stories through the medium of jazz.

As for the Simians themselves, they are led by two urban warriors: Andy ‘Monkey’ Davies and Lorenzo Bassignani. Based in London, ‘Monkey’ is a trumpet player who dabbles in the magical American art form of Bebop. He also possesses deadly martial art skills, acquired while working for the Russian mafia back in the Cold War. Deadly with a trumpet, it is said he once kayoed a man out with a rendition of Charlie Parker’s ‘Confirmation’. The chump still hasn’t got up. ‘Lama’ is a bass player by night. By day he is always busy playing chess on his own, practicing his trade and meditating about the role of bass frequencies in current geopolitics.